A Tale of Once Upon A Time
by MyraValhallah
Summary: AU. AU Belle died at the hands of the clerics to protect her daughter, Elsa- but as Mr Gold learns when Miss Emma Swan arrives in town, death cannot stop true love, all it can do is delay it for a while. Child!Elsa. Rumbelle, Swanfire, etc. Slight HP crossover.
1. Preface

_Dear Reader,_

_There is no such thing as a land without magic. There are merely worlds where such things are kept secret by those in the know; ours is one such world. Once upon a time all of our favourite storybook characters were brought to our world by a powerful curse- you all know that story… or do you?_

_Once upon a time dear readers I was hailed as the brightest witch of my age. My name _was _Hermione Granger; until I was hit by what was supposed to be the killing curse in the direct aftermath of the final battle of the second wizarding war of Great Britain. What I was actually hit by was (as I later discovered) a past life spell and _I _Belle de Francois, (later Gold), returned from the grave in poor dear Hermione's place._

_Hermione lives on in me; rather like the side effect of the Dark Curse of having two sets of memories, or so my husband, daughter and most of my friends tell me; although none of them _gained _magic in this land, as I did through Hermione. I must admit that this fact is irrelevant to the story I am about to tell has nothing to do with my old life in this land though I shall refer to the story of how I died first time around._

_This, readers is my first foray into the world of writing; I find myself allowed to do little else as of late, darling Rumple gets too damn protective of me when I'm expecting- but that is beside the point. The tale will be written in the third person as so many wonderful stories are, and it begins on the day that Henry brought his birth mother into town._

_I hope you enjoy it dear readers, certainly more than I enjoyed living _some _of it._

_Your friend and fellow story lover,_

_Belle._

~V~


	2. 1: Each Happy Ending

**Hey guys, here's chapter one. I hope you like it.**

* * *

_**Chapter One: Each Happy Ending Is A Brand New Beginning.**_

"You're not my real mom!"

As the front door slammed behind her daughter, Belle Gold knew that this time there was no winning the battle with her tears. She hated seeing her sweet little girl grown into such a brat. Elsa- or Hannah as she had become under her father's curse- just saw her as an intruder, someone who had stolen her papa away from her. Most mornings for the past four years- since Belle had moved into the salmon pink mansion that belonged to her family- saw Hannah Gold leaving for school in this manner; on weekends and holidays the door that slammed was the one to her bedroom.

On days like this Belle forewent magic to get through the household chores; Molly Weasley had once given Hermione a book of household spells that came in very useful for keeping the Victorian building clean.

She wanted Rumplestiltskin back. Her beloved Rumple, her true love and soul mate. Yes Adam, the man that the curse had reduced him to, loved her but he wasn't the same. There was so much that she needed to say to Rumple, things that Adam just wouldn't understand. Things that she had carried with her as she'd died in the old world and that had returned to her once the botched killing curse had brought her back to herself.

* * *

Hannah Gold couldn't help thinking that she'd heard Miss Blanchard give this talk about bird houses before but she listened to it carefully, in an attempt to quash the gnawing guilt she felt over the way she treated Belle. It wasn't that she didn't like her stepmom, she loved her actually; it was weird but she couldn't stop herself from being a brat around the poor woman. Henry Mills would probably say it was because of that curse he kept going on about.

The bell rang and Miss Blanchard dismissed them for lunch.

"No running!" she called as the class flowed from the classroom.

Hannah joined her classmates, wondering idly where Henry was, he hadn't been at school for the past two days; they weren't friends but she hoped that he wasn't ill.

And then she walked into someone coming the other way.

"I'm sorry." said Hannah to the pretty blonde lady she'd collided with.

"Watch where you're going, Miss Gold!" Mayor Mills' voice barked.

Hannah blanched. "Yes Madam Mayor."

"Hey, calm down," the blonde lady protested. "With all due respect Madam Mayor but she's just a kid. What's your name?" This last to Hannah.

"Hannah." said Hannah.

"Nice to meet you Hannah, I'm Emma."

_Emma._ Emma was the Saviour's name, and _her _name wasn't Hannah, not really- her name was Elsa.

* * *

_Elsa knew she probably shouldn't be down here. Papa wouldn't be happy with her, but with the curse now bearing down upon them she didn't want to be with the foster parents that Snow White and Prince Charming had given her to (especially as they wouldn't let her play with their daughter, Anna anymore)- she wanted her papa._

_"You shouldn't have come dearie." he scolded as soon as he saw her. "I didn't want you to see me like this."_

_"I'm sorry Papa," Elsa lowered her gaze in contrition. "but..."_

_"I know baby," he said softly. "I'm glad you're here."_

_White-blue eyes widened in genuine surprise. "Y-you are?"_

_He nodded. "We won't see one another for twenty eight years sweetling. It's only natural that you'd want to be with me tonight of all nights."_

_"I don't want to go papa. I'm scared"_

_Papa gently lifted her chin so she was looking at him. "I know snowflake, I know. But listen now, you and I are going to wake up as soon as we hear the saviour say her name. Remember her name is Emma."_

_"But what if I'm not with you in this new land?" Elsa asked._

_"You will be, I cut a deal with the Queen to make sure we have a good life in this new land, together as papa and daughter."_

_Elsa still wasn't convinced. "You promise that we'll wake up?"_

_"You have my word." Papa swore, using the very words he'd spoken to her mama years before to get her to agree to come to the Dark Castle with him._

_She closed the gap between them, hugging him through the tooth like bars of the cell that she knows he could so easily escape from. "I love you Papa."_

_"I love you too Sweetling." And pulled her as close to him as he could manage; her last memory before the curse was of the scent of sandalwood, straw and magic which forever clung to everything papa owned._

* * *

"Hurry along now Miss Gold." Regina said. "And enough dawdling Miss Swan, Miss Blanchard's classroom is this way."

Elsa hurried down the corridor and instead of turning left and going into the cafeteria, she carried on straight, out of school and ran home; she wanted, no needed, to apologize to Belle.

* * *

Belle arrived home at one o'clock. After finishing her housework she went to the library and spent a few hours reading in the apartment above it; following that she went to Granny's diner for lunch. She returned to find the door unlocked.

Belle was immediately on the alert. Her wand was in the house, hidden in the trick bottom of her bedside table, but she had taken several self defence classes since leaving the wizarding world so she could defend herself if need be. Fortunately, she didn't need it. The moment she stepped through the door she found her arms full of her ash-blonde ten year old.

"Elsa?" Her daughter's real name was off her tongue before she could stop it.

Blue eyes so like her own, widened. "How do you know that name?"

"Because I'm the one who named you, my little snowdrop." Tears stung her eyes as she realized that, impossibly, her little girl was awake.

"M-mama?" Elsa gasped, no one but her Papa knew that pet name- and he hadn't been the one to give it to her. "Is it really you…? It can't be, Papa said you were dead... How...?"

"I'd tell you how if I knew the answer." Belle promised. "But what about you, I'm pretty sure the curse isn't broken. How are you awake?"

"No, the curse isn't broken." Elsa shook her head. "I can't feel my powers yet. But the Saviour has come to town- I'm awake because she told me her name."

Belle arched an eyebrow. "And would that be one of your papa's little loopholes?"

Elsa nodded. "But it's just for me and papa- don't worry mama I can keep a secret."

"I'd be very surprised if you couldn't," Belle laughed, ruffling her daughter's pale hair. "You are Rumplestiltskin's daughter."

* * *

Adam was late, again. Belle would have been more upset if it weren't rent day. Her husband took rent day far too seriously- it was one of the few things that Adam had in common with his Impish alter-ego, just how seriously he took his deals. Dinner was finished and the washing up done, aside from Adam's plate which was waiting for him in the oven.

Elsa was upstairs doing her homework when it happened. Belle was in the living room, reading, when the front door banged open and there was an almighty clatter and the sound of her husband swearing. He'd fallen, likely over one of the very many articles of crap he kept in the hall.

"Belle!"

She set her book down and went to see what her husband had fallen over. He hadn't, somehow his cane had slipped and he'd fallen with it. She chuckled behind her hand and went to help her spouse up. Once he was back on his feet, Adam stared at her, almost as if he'd never seen before and Belle couldn't help but notice that there was something different about him. Something that had not been there when he'd kissed her goodbye that morning.

"Adam?" She blinked her stinging eyes and her heart fluttering, could it have happened already? "Why are you staring at me?"

And he was staring at her, in a way that nobody had ever looked at her in this lifetime- as if she were the very centre of the universe. He didn't answer, he simply whipped out his handkerchief to wipe her tears away.

"Adam?" she asked again. "What's the matter? Say somethi...mmmth."

She was cut off as his lips descended upon hers in a familiar, hungry kiss. The kind of kiss that she hadn't experienced since before Lord Maurice (she refused to think of him as her father) had given the order to have her killed, because she'd dared to defend her baby girl from the clerics.

"Rumple..." she purred as he broke the kiss. "It's you."

"It's _you_," he breathed, awestruck. "Its really you, my Belle. You're alive."

She managed a shaky laugh. "It takes more than an arrow to the chest to get rid of me Rumplestiltskin."

He kissed her again, hands rising to fist themselves into her hair as he poured all of his love for her and his joy at having her back in his arms into the embrace. Belle responded in kind, vowing to herself that no power in this, or any other world would tear her from his side ever again.

"Eww gross! Papa, Mama, get a room!"

Rumple and Belle sprang apart and looked up to find their an irate looking ten year old standing at the foot of the stairs.

"It's _my _house Els- Hannah Elizabeth," Rumple informed her. "And I'll kiss your mother in any part of it that I so wi… wait, what did you call me?"

"Papa." Elsa replied, entire demeanour brightening. "And I called Mama, _Mama_."

"Elsa...?"

Elsa wriggled her fingers at him. "Hi Papa. You've met Emma too."

"She was just checking in at the Inn." he told her, pulling both of his girls into his arms. This group hug was something that none of them thought they'd ever experience; Rumple and Elsa had both thought Belle was dead, and Belle had half feared that Elsa might reject her when she woke from the curse.

"So..." Elsa was the one to break the silence that had descended upon the three Golds. "What do we do now Papa?"

"We get Miss Swan to break the curse, and then we find your brother."

"And then we can be a family." Belle smiled. "All four of us."

"But right now, Missy," the former Dark One grinned, noticing his daughter trying unsuccessfully to hide her yawn. "It's bed time."

"But..."

"_Now _Elsa."

Elsa grumbled but did as she was told. "Night Mama. Night Papa." she kissed them both in turn before climbing the stairs.

Alone again, Rumple kissed his wife. "You and I my darling Belle have a lot of catching up to do. Starting, I think, with how you got that _lovely_ scar on your arm."

His fingers brushed the cotton covering the patch of her left forearm where the word _Mudblood_ had been carved into the flesh. Belle shifted uncomfortably. "That happened not to the girl I was before I woke up- I was eighteen at the time- the really interesting stuff started happening when I-_she_ was eleven."

Rumple stared at her. "Before you woke up? You have to tell me what happened to you and how you managed to come back to me... _us._"

"I will, but first, you might want to get your dinner- it's been warming for nearly an hour, it'll be ruined."

"Yes ma'am." he nodded and limped to the kitchen.

* * *

Elsa entered her room and moved to the window to shut the curtains, only to stop as she noticed the minute hand on the library-clock had moved. She smiled- the Saviour, Miss Emma, was staying in town and time was moving again.

She drew the curtains and began to change for bed, allowing her mind to wander to thoughts of what life would be when the curse was broken and they'd found Baelfire. She hoped that her brother wouldn't mind that she had magic- Papa had told her all about Bae and she couldn't wait to meet him for herself.

~V~


End file.
